Inaugural Conversation

If you elected to follow this blog, thank you and welcome again! It is a pleasure to have you here.

I am hoping to begin the conversation with a simple, yet perhaps thought-provoking, question: why online? Maybe that’s too simple. So explode that out—what about online teaching has drawn you to your profession? Did you arrive at it by accident? Or was your journey more deliberate?

Please share! I look forward to the conversation, and to using this new blog as a way for us to interact.

Stephen

Share this:

Like this:

Related

3 Responses to “Inaugural Conversation”

Interesting question… for me online was not an accident. I was looking into doctoral programs and my choices were computer science or instructional technology. I am sort of a “late bloomer” so I really did not think the computer science degree was feasible, so I looked into instructional technology with a minor in computer science. One of the “hottest” topics at that time in instructional technology (this was in 1999) was online learning. Being a “traditional” faculty member, I was skeptical. For the next 5 years, I studied, researched, and learned more about online learning through course work, developing a hybrid model where I taught. I continued teaching both online and on-ground courses, and I still think both modalities are valuable!

I appreciate your reply and hope we get more discussion, too! My experience is fairly similar, although coming down a different path. As you know, my teaching history prior to joining TCSPP as in language learning. And technology is really growing in that discipline. For me, it represents both an opportunity and a danger. Will technology render obsolete the language professor (in favor of language programs, apps, etc.)? Or will it help enhance the experience? For me, at least, I was successful at merging language learning with the benefits technology afforded to it. I am interested to see where this path will lead us!

Thank-you for setting up this blog! I believe it would be helpful for us to bounce ideas off of one another. I was also a traditional adjunct faculty with only on-ground courses for about 10 years. I was referred to TCSPP by a current faculty member and given I work in forensics, they thought I would be a good fit. I believe that the TOPS program was an excellent training tool because I learned the challenges of being an instructor and also a student.

I believe that online learning has allowed students the opportunity to attend schools that they would have otherwise been unable to because of the distance. The online program allows for greater diversity since we have students from everywhere. We have had discussions about what a certain state is like in comparison to another in the field of psychology.

I believe that using technology that allows for face to face contact improves online learning. I like Skype and Eyejot. It is great to see the students and I believe this improves rapport.